Justice Sarfraz Dogar takes charge as Chief Justice IHC

ISLAMABAD: Maneuvering the sharp criticism on the seniority of judges, Justice Sarfraz Dogar has taken the oath as the acting Chief Justice of Islamabad High Court (IHC) under President Asif Ali Zardari.

Earlier in the day, six permanent judges and one ad-hoc judge have taken the oath today, making it a total of seven being sworn in the Supreme Court under Chief Justice Yahya Afridi. Justice Aamer Farooq, who helmed IHC has been elevated to the Supreme Court, leading Justice Dogar to fill his position.

Seven new Supreme Court judges sworn in

On February 10, the CJP had chaired a meeting of the Judicial Commission of Pakistan (JCP) to pick six judges for the Supreme Court, as lawyers in Islamabad staged a protest demonstration demanding the postponement of the moot till the adjudication of pleas challenging the 26th Constitutional Amendment, earlier approved by the president following its approval by Parliament.

During an informal conversation with the media outside the Supreme Court premises on Thursday, Attorney General for Pakistan (AGP) Mansoor Usman Awan said that he too did not see eye to eye on the matters of seniority as a result of the latest appointments to the IHC.

‘Appointment’ different from ‘transfer’: IHC Chief Justice rules

He said that he did not agree with the position of CJP Afridi on Justice Sarfaraz Dogar’s seniority. “My position is in writing in the Judicial Commission meeting,” AGP Awan said, adding, the seniority list of judges is made from among those who have previously taken the oath.

“The transfer of a judge from any high court is not temporary,” the attorney general said.

Justice Babar Sattar of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) had also written a letter to former IHC Chief Justice Aamer Farooq, expressing concerns regarding the recent transfer of judges and the changes in the court’s administrative committee. 

The IHC had witnessed administrative changes as the then newly transferred Justice Dogar replaced Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, as the new administrative judge for accountability and anti-terrorism courts.